This invention relates to analyzing apparatus in which a fluid sample is to be tested. While the invention herein is primarily related to the testing of biological samples such as serum, it is not intended to be so restricted in its utility.
The method and analyzing apparatus of the present invention provides a relatively simple, automatic and reliable testing of individual body fluid samples of a substantial number of patients suspected of having contracted a contagious disease such as, for example, gonorrhoeae, Rubella and other kinds of infectious diseases, and to also enable a mass population screen testing for said disease to be easily undertaken.
The present system is primarily designed to detect and measure infectious disease antigens and antibodies by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay indirect method as is described in the publication "The Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)" by Voller, A., Bidwell, D. E. and Bartlett, A., published by Flowline Publications, Guernsey, Europe. The instrument system is designed to carry out the test protocol described by this publication, and typical tests performed with the subject analyzer, while not limited thereto, include digoxin, gonorrhea, hepatitis, Rubella, T3 and T4.
Merely for purposes of the present disclosure, the method and instrument apparatus of the present invention will be herein described for detection of infectious gonorrhoeae.
The infection caused by the organism Neisseria gonorrhoeae commonly known as Gonorrhea is a venereal disease of an extremely widespread nature in humans. The disease usually manifests itself by a visible discharge in males but frequently is undetected and undetectable by external symptoms in females infected therewith. Heretofore, the only reliable mode of detection of infection has been by culturing discharges of mucus fluids believed to contain the organism. Such cultures take a period of more than one day to grow. Because of the social opprobrium attached to the disease and the reluctance of many persons infected therewith to return to the test clinic, it has long been desirable to provide a screening method which can give a reliable indication of possible infection or noninfection during a time for which it is reasonable to require the test subject to remain in the clinic.